The subject matter of the present disclosure broadly relates to the art of spring devices and, more particularly, to an end member for use in forming gas spring assemblies. A suspension system for a vehicle that includes one or more of such gas spring assemblies is also included.
The subject matter of the present disclosure may find particular application and use in conjunction with components for wheeled vehicles, and will be shown and described herein with reference thereto. However, it is to be appreciated that the subject matter of the present disclosure is also amenable to use in other applications and environments, and that the specific uses shown and described herein are merely exemplary. For example, the subject matter of the present disclosure could be used in connection with gas spring assemblies of non-wheeled vehicles, support structures, height adjusting systems and actuators associated with industrial machinery, components thereof and/or other such equipment. Accordingly, the subject matter of the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to use associated with gas spring suspension systems of wheeled vehicles.
Wheeled motor vehicles of most types and kinds include a sprung mass, such as a body or chassis, for example, and an unsprung mass, such as two or more axles or other wheel-engaging members, for example, with a suspension system disposed therebetween. Typically, a suspension system will include a plurality of spring devices as well as a plurality of damping devices that together permit the sprung and unsprung masses of the vehicle to move in a somewhat controlled manner relative to one another. Movement of the sprung and unsprung masses toward one another is normally referred to in the art as jounce motion while movement of the sprung and unsprung masses away from one another is commonly referred to in the art as rebound motion.
Generally, the range of motion of a suspension system extends between a first or fully compressed condition and a second or fully extended condition. To eliminate contact between opposing portions of the sprung and unsprung masses, contact between opposing portions of components of the suspension system or contact between any combination thereof, jounce bumpers are commonly installed in one or more areas of the vehicle to prevent such opposing portions from directly impacting one another. Thus, during jounce motion of the suspension system, an opposing component will contact the jounce bumper rather than impacting the component on or near which the jounce bumper is mounted.
In some cases, it has been deemed desirable to reduce the overall weight of a vehicle suspension system. Reducing the weight of one or more of the end members of the one or more gas spring assemblies can be one contributing factor to achieving such a goal. As such, end members have been designed and constructed from polymeric materials to contribute to reduced suspension system weight. Additionally, such constructions may contribute to reduced cost of manufacture and/or other potentially desirable factors. However, it has been recognized that at least some known polymeric end member designs may be less than optimally suited for use in operation with jounce bumpers, such as under the conditions of use described above.
Notwithstanding the widespread usage and overall success of the wide variety of polymeric end member designs that are known in the art, it is believed that a need exists to meet these competing goals while still retaining comparable or improved performance, ease of manufacture, ease of assembly, ease of installation and/or reduced cost of manufacture.